Steve's Digicams - Breaking News - Kodak 02/22/2006 Press Release

Press Releases - February 22, 2006

Nikon, Olympus, Pentax Debut IMAGELINK System-Enabled Cameras at PMA

Acceptance of Printing Standard Will Benefit Millions of Consumers Worldwide

Rochester, NY, Feb. 22 – Nikon, Olympus and Pentax introduced five digital cameras designed to connect to Kodak’s EASYSHARE printer dock via the IMAGELINK system standard here at the Photo Marketing Association International Convention and Trade Show this week.

The IMAGELINK print system, introduced by Kodak and a consortium of leading digital camera manufacturers at Photokina in September 2004, is a standard that allows pictures taken with a digital camera to be printed directly on the KODAK EASYSHARE printer dock. The dock enables consumers to print outstanding quality snapshots at the press of a button without connecting to a computer -- a task that many consumers find complicated and time consuming.

"We are gratified that Nikon, Olympus and Pentax are helping to expand the IMAGELINK system universe by launching their compatible cameras and bringing the benefits of high-quality home printing to more consumers than ever before. The people who buy these new IMAGELINK system compatible digital cameras will now be able to create durable, waterproof prints at home – with or without a computer," said Steven Decker, general manager and vice president, Kodak’s Home Printing Solutions business. He cited these new products as evidence that other companies see value in enabling consumers to print pictures at home via the IMAGELINK system and the KODAK EASYSHARE printer dock.

The newly unveiled IMAGELINK system compatible cameras from Nikon, Olympus and Pentax include :

Each of the five new digital camera models will be shipped with a custom dock insert to ensure a great out-of-the-box consumer experience. All of the cameras are compatible with the KODAK EASYSHARE series 3 printer dock and planned future models. Customer availability of the new cameras is expected to start in March 2006, and distribution will be worldwide.

Decker anticipates that Kodak’s IMAGELINK system partners will introduce additional cameras supporting the standard as the year progresses, and that many people in the world will enjoy picture printing with either a KODAK, NIKON, OLYMPUS or PENTAX camera on the printer dock at home with one-button simplicity.

Kodak’s EASYSHARE printer dock holds a market leading position in the snapshot printer category. Introduced in March 2003, the printer dock has been recognized as one of the most successful new consumer digital product launches in Kodak history.